International delegation learns about county's communicaitons system

by Bob Klager - STAFF WRITER

KINTORE - A.J. Baker Public School stepped onto the world stage here Friday afternoon, showing off its state-of-the-art communications technology to over a dozen international visitors.

The last stop on a whirlwind tour through Oxford County by delegates to a rural telecommunications conference at the University of Guelph, the school represented yet another example of the county's innovative new information network.

And like Ted Fowler, a Grade 8 student demonstrating A.J. Baker's web site, the visitors from as far away as Africa, Vietnam and Honduras were at the school to learn.

"There is really not much difference between Oxford County and these countries when it comes to rural communications. All are at the beginning stages," said Helen Aitkin, international programs manager for Guelph's Telecommons Development Group, the facilitator for last week's conference. "The one big difference in the most remote developing countries is that they are 'phone-culture' poor if they have any phones at all.

"This study tour allows these people to look at Canada's experience and, in Oxford County, learn how libraries, schools and employment services have become community information centres."

If the county is in the beginning stages, growth in wireless communication networking is increasing quickly, says Sam Coghlin, chief Librarian of the Oxford County Library.

He has been at the forefront of linking county libraries, Canada Employment Centres (CEC) and municipalities through Information Access Oxford, and said Friday's tour was an opportunity to showcase how groups in Oxford are using new information technology to improve their services.

"This is being done in other rural parts of the province, but we are one of the first to have it in place," said Coghlin. "It requires building a high level of partnership, but it's a really successful way to work together, reduce costs and improve services."

Arriving at Woodstock's CEC early Friday, the delegates travelled to the Oxford courthouse, Beachville's community access point, Ingersoll's public library and learning and employment centre, before stopping in Kintore.

Currently, installation of the network is mid-process at all county libraries and municipal offices, with the greatly appreciated assistance of government funding, said Coghlin. By December, testing will begin, with full operation anticipated by the first of the year.

The wireless technology, that involves various locations sharing the same 'spectrum' over line-of-site antenna towers, provides what is more easily described as "knock-your-socks-off speed," said Coghlin.

Such benefits are behind the network's goal to continually increase partnerships in the future.

"The level of connectivity we have now is way more than we need," he added. "All public sector bodies would be able to piggy-back on it.

"The goal of this learning tour of international visitors was to provide them an opportunity to see if they could learn anything from us."

All rights reserved where they are not already the property of other parties; content may not be copied in whole or in part, through electronic or other means, without the author's permission, or face prosecution under Federal Law.

AnnexWEB.com is written and designed on 100% Apple Power Macintosh computers.